Leaf boosts battery life; Chrysler adds truck jobs

A Nissan employee plugs in a Leaf electric car in Tokyo on Tuesday. (Junji Kurokawa / The Associated Press)

Leaf upgrades include longer battery life
The upgraded Nissan Leaf electric car can travel farther without recharging, comes in a cheaper model and tells drivers how much battery life is left. The changes in the revamped model, shown this week in Tokyo, were based on feedback from owners whose chief worry was running out of electric juice while driving, Nissan officials say. The new model can travel 142 miles on a single charge, up from 124 miles. The price in Japan was dropped from $37,000 to $31,000. Nissan did not detail overseas sales plans but says similar upgrades are in the works.
— The Associated Press

(Chrysler)

Chrysler adding jobs to ready for truck sales
Chrysler plans to add up to 1,250 jobs at three Detroit-area factories as it prepares for a rise in pickup sales. The company says it will invest $238 million at engine plants in Detroit and suburban Trenton, Mich., and add a third shift at a pickup-truck factory in nearby Warren, Mich. The company has hired 12,000 workers since leaving bankruptcy protection in 2009. The new hires would boost Chrysler's total worldwide employment to 63,450.
— The Associated Press